REHOMING ASSISTANCE POLICY

PAWS offers rehoming assistance to :

pet owners who have exhausted all other options to keep their pet and really has no choice but to rehome his/her pet (worst case scenario)---- PAWS strongly encourages responsible pet ownership and one of its campaigns is to remind people that A PET IS A LIFETIME COMMITMENT.

rescuers/good samaritans who have picked up strays or injured dogs/cats from the streets

IMPORTANT NOTE:Before taking in a pet or a rescue in the first place - one should first assess his/her capacity to assume the responsibilities of a good pet owner - time-wise, space-wise, emotionally, and financially --- Only own the number of pets you can responsibly care for and give lifetime commitment as well as the exercise, socialization, training and vet care they need. Don't bring in a pet or rescue if you are not allowed to keep it within your home. Don't allow your pets to breed if you cannot keep the puppies/kittens or will rely on others to find homes for them. In other words, keep in mind RESPONSIBLE PET OWNERSHIP.

WHAT RESPONSIBLE PET OWNERS/RESCUERS SHOULD DO:

Spay/neuter pets - so they cannot mate and breed, and so the pet owner/rescuer will not end up with more pets than one can responsibly care for. This also prevents unwanted litters to give away/abandon or "donate", or the reason that one cannot care for the rescued animal because your own dog is pregnant. Spay/neuter also eliminates behavior changes caused by hormones. (S/N can be done by your trusted licensed vet or at the PAWS low-cost clinic)

Provide enough exercise, training and socialization - for a well-balanced and well-mannered pet

Plan ahead and make arrangements early (i.e., before buying that new house or condo or moving to a new place, ask about their pet policies and start looking for a new home months ahead in order to find their pets responsible loving homes)

Exert your best effort and take responsibility in finding your pet a new loving home by asking friends, family, officemates, schoolmates, churchmates, etc. Post your own adoption plea in your own Facebook page or online blog

Finding a new home for your pet or rescue will not be easy and there is no instant solution. It takes time, patience and a lot of hard work to screen new homes.

REHOMING ASSISTANCE CONDITIONS THAT PET OWNERS OR RESCUERS MUST MEET BEFORE PAWS CAN ASSIST WITH REHOMING:

(1) you have exhausted all other options to keep your pet (or rescue) and really have no choice but to rehome the animal -- you have asked friends, relatives, colleagues, churchmates and you have posted your own rehoming plea in your own online social networks (Please provide us with the link to your rehoming plea on your Facebook / blog)

(4) animal is Non-aggressive (no “biting” problems) -- if negative, PAWS offers behavior rehabilitation assistance (Scheduled in advance and held only at PAWS. Owner and dog will have to go to PAWS for all sessions.)

If pet owner is giving up his/her pet due to aggression or biting, we hope that by spaying/neutering his pet and by undergoing free behavior rehabilitation/training at PARC (where owner commits and does the training with their pet at PARC) that the owner changes his mind and keeps his pet. [Read: Pet bites/ has bad behavior/ is aggressive. What do I do?]

(Important: Owner has to treat the animal at his own expense or put efforts in behavior rehabilitation before expecting that an animal can be successfully rehomed. He should not expect a charity organization to subsidize this expense as the organization is already trying to help him out with advertising and screening of potential adopters for his pet on top of its regular work for numerous animals in need.)

To avail of PAWS' low cost spay/neuter and vet services, please call 475-1688 (between 10am-12nn, 1pm-5pm Mondays to Saturdays except holidays) to inquire or schedule an appointment with the shelter vet. PAWS rates can be found here: http://www.paws.org.ph/veterinary-services.html

Once the rehoming conditions have been met, kindly email your pet's photo and a description of his personality, likes/dislikes, etc. TO: philpaws@paws.org.ph CC: pawsphinquiries@gmail.com with the SUBJECT: REHOMING ASSISTANCE. Kindly include the name/number of the vet who spayed/neutered your pet for verification purposes.

Note:

Your pet/rescue will not wait at the shelter for an adopter.

All pet owners who are thinking of giving up their pet OR rescuers who want to look for homes for their rescued animals must ensure that the pet is spayed/neutered to prevent pet overpopulation and more cases of pet abandonment.

The rehoming assistance will be in the form of advertising within our networks and facilitating rehoming straight from your home (owner) to another person’s home (the adopter/new home).

PAWS offers the Rehoming Assistance for free just to help the pet owner/rescuer on top of all the shelter work and responsibilities of animal welfare. So pet owner/rescuer should also exert the effort to rehome their pets responsibly.

The goal of PAWS' admission & rehoming assistance policy is to achieve the greatest good by carefully balancing the possibility of euthanasia versus delaying the admission of an animal deemed at risk.

We also would not want to provide an avenue for irresponsible pet owners to dump their pets but we would want them to take responsibility for rehoming and rehabilitation.

PS: How can you tell if the potential adopter is going to provide a loving home for your pet? Download the PAWS Adoption Application. You can ask these same questions and also ask to see the potential adopter's home before you rehome your dog/cat. Don't forget to make sure your pet is spayed/neutered.

As mentioned, PAWS' rehoming assistance is also available for good samaritans who have rescued strays or injured dogs/cats from the streets as long as the rehoming conditions have been met.

We ask that rescuers foster or temporarily keep the animal until space opens up at the quarantine section of the shelter or until a home can be found.

Fosterers who sign the Foster Agreement Form is automatically entitled to free consultation and vet assistance at the PAWS clinic for their rescue while it is under their care.

IMPORTANT TIPS FOR RESCUERS

Assess first one's capacity to assume and commit to the responsibilities of a good rescuer before taking in a rescue -- do you have the time, patience, safe and ample space, resources and budget not only for food but for vet care?

Annual vet checkup, routine vaccination, spay/neuter should be a standard (not optional) practice among responsible pet owners, and they should be able to provide this for their rescues as well. Also consider if you have the means to provide medical care in case 1,2 or all of the pets get sick at once.

Being asked to FOSTER (TEMPORARILY KEEP) their rescue is common practice, especially if they approach an animal welfare org that cannot admit new animals into a full shelter with strict Admission policies and a quarantine protocol that will protect the health and general welfare of the current shelter animals

Only take in the rescue that you can manage and can afford to responsibly care for.

We have observed an alarming trend lately of people who habitually rescue on impulse without taking into consideration their limitations, without having their pets spayed/neutered early on such that the animals mate and breed until they're in over their heads with the 'zoo' they ended up with.

In the long run these "rescuers" end up calling animal welfare groups like PAWS to surrender their pets or asking PAWS to get them treated or spayed/neutered for free - not knowing that by doing so, they are inadvertently depriving other animals in distress from the funds that could have afforded PAWS to extend free or charity rates to genuine low-income pet owners and rescue cases.